The Online Abstract Submission for the 10th Annual Meeting of the American Society of Interventional Pain Physicians is now open. The meeting will be held June 21- June 25, 2008 at the Crystal Gateway Marriott in Washington, DC.

To be considered for a presentation at the meeting, abstracts must be submitted and completed by the submission deadline of 5 pm Central Standard Time (CST) Friday, December 28, 2007.

Click here for rules an submission direction

"In the confrontation between the stream and the rock, the stream always wins -- not through strength but by perseverance." - H. Jackson Brown

The Senate Finance Committee is currently revising key aspects of the closely held Medicare reform package. Negotiations are currently taking place and the planned markup is only days away. This is the time to push hard for a two-year fix with deficits not coming back to haunt us in the third year. Please continue to write letters. It is more important now than ever before.

The links below have been edited to address our specific request. Even if you have already sent letters, please send these again as they have new content.

To send a letter from yourself click on the Physician Capwiz Letter link below. You may edit the letter or send it as it is. You may send it through Capwiz or fax or mail the letter on your personal or business letterhead. The choice is yours.

Please take the time to send a letter today. Additionally, we urge you to have your patients sign the letter and support this effort as well.

• Capwiz Physician Letter
• Capwiz Patient Letter
• Capwiz Staff Letter
• Capwiz Citizen Letter
  

1. Customize and print off copies of the sample
2. Identify patients' state, putting the names of their Senators and Representative at the top of the page along with the President. Only one letter with all the names is necessary (see example).
3. As your patients sign out, ask them to fill out and
4. Using the patient Capwiz link assign a staff
5. Also you can print off the ASIPP Advocacy page and post or hand out to your patients for more information
   

• Example Physician Letter
• Example Patient Letter
• Example Staff Letter
• Example Citizen Letter

Make plans to attend ASIPP's comprehensive review course and hands-on cadaver workshop dedicated solely to vertebroplasty, kyphoplasty and Sacroplasty on February 8-10, 2007 in Memphis TN. This CME educational program will consist of didactics covering various aspects of vertebroplasty and kyphoplasty, followed by a comprehensive hands- on cadaver workshop.

The course is designed to prepare physicians seeking credentialing or as an in-depth review of vertebroplasty and kyphoplasty. Participants will experience a comprehensive learning opportunity focused on all aspects of vertebroplasty, kyphoplasty, and Sacroplasty.

Register before Jan. 18, 2008 to obtain the early registration discount! Visit the ASIPP Web site for more information.

On Nov. 20, a New Jersey Superior Court Judge issued an opinion in Garcia v. Health Net, Inc., c-37- 96, (N.J. Super. Ct. Nov. 20, 2007), that could adversely impact physician ownership in ambulatory surgery centers in New Jersey. The court ultimately held that Wayne Surgical Center and its physician owners did not violate New Jersey's Insurance Fraud Prevention Act (the IFPA) by submitting claims for services which either were based on referrals in violation of the Codey Act, or for which patient co- insurance payments were routinely waived. However, in reaching this decision, the court analyzed whether a physician making a referral to an ambulatory surgery center in which such physician has an ownership interest is a violation of the Codey Act, N.J.S.A. 45:9- 22.5, a criminal statute which prohibits physician self- referrals, and determined the physicians' referral to the center is a violation. (Becker,/Heinze, Nov. 29, 2007, Becker's ASC Review)

At a Meeting in Honolulu on November 10-13, the American Medical Association (AMA) House of Delegates adopted a resolution that the "interventional pain management of patients suffering from chronic pain constitutes the practice of medicine" -- and by inference, should not be conducted by certified nurse anesthetists or any health care providers other than physicians. The AMA delegates voted not to consider a late resolution to set guidelines for collaborative agreements with APRNs, and to review APRN education, training, quality of care, and physician oversight. In general, the major areas of interest to AMA delegates were health care reform - including caring for the uninsured, SCHIP and opposition to a single payer system; insufficient Medicare reimbursements to physicians; and limitations on physician practice by health insurers and hospitals.

More doctors are discovering they have some recourse through countersuits or other legal tactics to hold lawyers accountable as a series of favorable court rulings is turning the tide in their crusade against frivolous medical liability lawsuits.

Three Ohio courts in six months sanctioned plaintiff lawyers for pursuing unsupported claims against three doctors. Judges awarded the physicians their legal expenses. In New Orleans, the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals upheld a similar award to a Mississippi doctor Nov. 13.

The courts chastised the attorneys for wanton behavior including: suing the wrong doctor; refiling a claim against a physician even though the plaintiff's expert withdrew his testimony the first time around; and having no expert testimony against one doctor yet failing to drop the case.

amednews.com

On Friday, November 16, 2007, the Centers for Medicare Medicaid Services (CMS) issued a proposed rule (CMS-0016-P) to adopt final uniform standards for an electronic prescription drug program under the Medicare Prescription Drug Program, or Part D. There is a 60-day public comment period on the proposed rule. Comments are due to CMS by January 15, 2008.

Summary of the CMS E- prescribing

Federal Register

The latest statewide report on drug-related deaths released Tuesday shows fatal prescription drug overdoses in Palm Beach and Broward counties are on pace to surpass last year's tallies. (Santana, Dec. 5, 2007 South Florida Sun-Sentinel)

The report covers 3,980 cases from the first half of the year and was compiled by the Florida Department of Law Enforcement and state medical examiners. It includes fatal overdoses and deaths in which a person died from another cause but happened to have drugs in their system.

The deadliest drugs locally and statewide were cocaine, the prescription painkillers methadone and oxycodone and the anti-anxiety medication alprazolam - better known as Xanax. Methadone also is commonly prescribed to ease the withdrawal symptoms experienced by people addicted to opium- based drugs, such as heroin.

ASIPP is offering a new feature for those who advertise on our Postions Wanted section of the ASIPP Website. As a service to our advertisers and our members, we will list the link to each current job posting.

Interventional Pain Physician -- Louisville, Kentucky

Pain Management -- Florida

Pain Management Opportunity -- Pennsylvania

Entrepreneurial Opportunity -- Lake Tahoe, Nevada

Florida Opportunities

Pain Medicine Fellowship Program Opportunity

Interventional Pain Specialist -- Toledo, Ohio

Interventional Pain Specialist -- Paducah, KY and Marion, IL

Interventional Pain Medicine Physician -- St. Cloud, Minnesota

Entrepreneurial Opportunity -- Wooster, Ohio

Musculoskeletal Interventionalist -- Dallas, Texas

Interventional Pain Specialist - Bethlehem, Pennsylvania

Interventional Pain Physician -- New Hampshire

Interventional Pain Physiatrist Wanted - Nevada

ASIPP is now offering the Interventional Techniques In Chronic Spinal Pain to all meeting registrants at the special price of 50% off.

Interventional Techniques in Chronic Spinal Pain is the premier manual for interventionalists. With detailed descriptions of practical techniques in interventional pain management this is a must have publication for all interventioanl pain physicians. Additionally Eeach book comes with a complimentary CD version of the book.

To order your copy, go to ASIPP Web site.

ASIPP Publishing